Deep Space Journey - 16. DSJ Chapter 16

“Lord Lenegan, we understand that you miss your family and that your work on Scorpion and at the Academy has kept you away from them. As it happens, the Regent is currently travelling from Sahndrol as we speak, to visit all of the outer colonies of the Empire, along with her cousin, who is nearly well enough to resume his duties as the new Emperor of Sahndrol.

They will be arriving here at Ganymede in 3 weeks’ time, as they are approaching the outer reaches of our solar system. We knew you were coming here, as Administrator Lucas Durham notified us of the completion of the Luna Base on Earth’s moon, and that it is fully operational, and let it slip out that you were in transit back to Ganymede.

We have decided to have Administrator Durham take over your duties on Scorpion and at Mars so that you can resume your duties here at Ganymede” the Chancellor informed Quinn.

“I thank you, Sir, for allowing me to return here, and for me to be able to see my family again, I do miss them very much, is Lucas bringing the Scorpion back to Mars orbit, to allow Earth to take over administrating their moon?” Quinn replied, “Yes, that is correct, they have already begun the journey, which will take 5 days to complete, as it doesn’t have as much engine power as most of our space crafts” the Chancellor replied.

“What about the access to the Luna Base from Earth, what is happening with that?” Quinn asked, “That is at hand, Administrator Durham, has arranged for the cadets to finish their training 3 months ahead of schedule, 20 of them will remain on Mars, while 10 will be posted onboard Scorpion Space Station, another 10 will be posted to Earth Base near New Zealand, the last 20 are being posted to Germany on Earth, to begin assisting the International Space Federation with training the people who will be posted to the Lunar Base on the moon, which they have named, Prometheus.

The ISF has leased some buildings near to the European Space Agency Astronaut Training Centre, which is right next door to the Cologne Airport, to allow the training to take place, and the two remaining shuttles from Scorpion will be given to the ISF, to allow easy transport to Prometheus from Earth.

We have removed all advanced technology from the shuttles, so there will be no concerns in regards to the possibility of our advanced technology getting into the wrong hands, and any attempts to alter the systems on the shuttles, will result in it shutting down, and being totally useless, even with travel to Prometheus, and only the former cadets and the 4 URP staff who will be going with them, will have the training and skills to pilot the shuttle.

Through the URP Ambassador in Switzerland, the ISF has also accepted our recommendation to rename the planet Uranus, to Sunaru, which is just it being spelt backwards, as we are not very comfortable with the name. They said they would submit the recommendation to the United Nations, adding that both the United Republic of Planets of Sahndrol and the International Space Federation are both in support of the name change” the Chancellor said.

In the next few weeks, Quinn kept busy getting settled back into a regular routine at Ganymede and keeping in contact with Lucas on Scorpion, which was now in a permanent orbit around Mars, and Lucas kept him updated with the Prometheus Crew training, which has been set at 12 weeks long, to ensure that they all understand what it will be like living on another planet, or moon in this case, away from Earth.

Quinn also was kept busy with re-establishing contact with the schools in New Zealand and Australia, to set up a Space Education programme with the schools, with regular lectures coming via video link from Ganymede or the Academy on Mars. When the Imperial ship arrived at Ganymede, there was a formal welcome ceremony for the Crown Emperor and Imperial Regent, followed by a reception for the visitors to meet some of the residents of Ganymede.

Once all the formalities were completed, Quinn was able to spend some alone time with his wife and sons, as they retreated to their living quarters to hug, cry, talk and just be together, which Quinn had missed so much over the past 6 months. Both boys had grown a lot while they were in Sahndrol, and Quinn had missed both of their birthdays, as they were now 9 and 6 years old, with Maenyl looking so much like his mother, and Suamyl looking so much like his father.

A few hours later, Quinn and his whole family were summoned to the High Council Chamber, unsure what why this was happening. “You have all been summoned to settle a few matters” the Crown Emperor stated to us, with the Chancellor sitting next to him, and the High Council all in attendance.

Mr Dennison has stated that he wishes to retire from his position as Chancellor of the Outer Colonies of the Sahndrol Empire, and it is my recommendation to the High Council, that you Madam Regent, take up the role if you would like to that is” the Crown Emperor stated, and both Quinn and Natihya were shocked at this announcement, and it took a few moments to recover from the shock.

“Your Supreme Highness, I would be honoured to succeed Mr Dennison as the new Chancellor of the United Republic of Planets of Sahndrol” Natihya responded formally, “That is good to hear, that means your family can remain together again, and that brings me to the next item on the agenda, Lord Lenegan, as the partner of the new Chancellor, you shall retain your title, and I also give you the title of Executive Ambassador, meaning you are in charge of all Diplomatic matters between the Sahndrol and Earth.

“Chancellor, I would like you and your family to travel with me to show me the rest of the outer region of the Empire, so we will rest for now and after lunch tomorrow we will continue our journey” the Crown Emperor announced, and the family bowed before exiting the High Council Chambers.

Back at our living quarters, the boys went to their rooms to rest for a while, while Quinn and Natihya relaxed in their family lounge area. Once we left Ganymede, we spent the next three days travelling to Mars, to inspect the Space Research and Training Academy, and the Scorpion Space Station. A few hours before the Imperial ship was due to arrive at the Space Station, Quinn made a call to Lucas.

“Scorpion, Administrator Durham speaking,” Lucas said as he answered the call, “Hi mate, it’s Quinn here, I estimate that you have three hours to get ready, I am on board the Imperial Ship, with the Crown Emperor, the new Chancellor, and my family, we have come to inspect the Space Station and Academy,” Quinn said to his friend.

“Oh hell, a bit more warning would have been nice, I had no idea you were coming” Lucas replied, which made Quinn chuckle, “I thought that maybe the case, so I gave you a call to give you a bit of warning, see you soon, bye for now,” Quinn said and he ended the call. Shortly afterwards Quinn was summoned to the Bridge. “My Lord, you have experience docking at this space station, so I thought you might like to have the honours,” the Flight Commander said when Quinn walked in.

“Thanks for the offer, but I am sure you are quite capable of docking without any problems” Quinn replied, as he sat in the spare crew seat and strapped in, before putting on a headset and flicking a switch, “Lord Lenegan to all crew and passengers, please take your seats in preparation for landing at Scorpion,” he said before changing a setting on the Communications panel.

“Lord Lenegan to Space Station Scorpion, over,” he said as the space station came into sight, “Space station to Lord Lenegan, receiving you loud a clear, over” came a formal response, “Scorpion, this is the Imperial Space Ship with the Crown Emperor, new Chancellor and my family onboard, requesting clearance for docking over,” Quinn said, “Yes my Lord, you have clearance for Docking Port S3 over” came a reply.

“Thank-you Scorpion, please inform the Administrator of our pending arrival, over and out,” Quinn said before removing the headset and sitting back to watch the docking take place. A formal Royal guard of honour was on parade as the Crown Emperor, the Chancellor, Quinn and the boys stepped off the ship, and Quinn saw Lucas smile at him and give a slight nod of the head, before approaching the Crown Emperor, and then the Chancellor, looking shocked that it was Natihya who had taken over the vice-regal position.

While Lucas was busy showing the royal visitors around the space station, Quinn took his two sons to the recreation lounge, to have some fun, and to relax a little, as they had very little to do during the three-day journey, and the boys were chasing each other around the large room, when the royal entourage entered, and they nearly ran right into their mother, stopping still, when Natihya growled at them.

“It is ok cousin, let them continue, they need to have fun after being stuck on the ship for three days,” the Crown Emperor said to Natihya, who nodded her head and indicated to her boys to go. “So, what do you think of the space station Imperial Highness,” Quinn said to his cousin-in-law, “Very impressed Quinn, you have done a wonderful job getting this Space station built and operational, and Mr Durham here has done a great job of continuing your work” the Crown Emperor replied.